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James O'Brien

Hockey Daily Dose

Reaping with the Enemy

Before we get into this, do note the biggest story of Monday: Evgeni Malkin returned surprisingly soon from a concussion and looked great. More on that later on in Tuesday’s Dose ...

Take a second, step back and think of a time that might be long ago or really not that far away: your first-ever fantasy hockey draft.

For the vast majority of you, I’d wager that it was a purer time - some might say a naive time - for you as a hockey fan.* Back then, you were FAR more likely to pick a guy you admired or rooted for. Now, you should really look at your team as a band of mercenaries who are hopefully more competent than the color-coded bunch in “Reservoir Dogs.”

As you might guess, my advice is that you should take the mercenary approach. Ideally, you should look at the waiver wire and draft board like a Terminator robot might.

In all honesty, I almost prefer to load my roster with “enigmas” who are generally loathed by other hockey writers and fans. Perhaps it’s my inner B-movie villain or wrestling heel, but really, you’re better served to align yourself with producers whom you’re reluctantly (or not-so-reluctantly) adding because they’re just that good instead of siding with your heart over your brain.

Just look at some of the best values and league leaders; those lists are littered with some of the most loathed guys around. (Note: I actually think most, if not all of those loathed types are a lot of fun.)

Sidney Crosby - Don’t furrow your brow. Merely take a stroll around Twitter/message boards and you’ll see how many people have a serious distaste for “The Golden Boy.” While the vitriol has cooled off more recently (maybe because of his concussion troubles), it’s always there, barely below the surface.

Ultimately, he’s like Lebron James in many ways. They both are brilliant enough to dazzle casual and hardcore observers alike. They both draw a lot of strange, misplaced rage from fans. Most importantly, though, they both absolutely live up to the mountainous hype they arrived with.

Patrick Kane - As someone who’s been waving the Patrick Kane pom poms for a while now, it’s really satisfying to see the supposedly “troubled” star rise from a really good player to a no-doubt-about-it elite player.

Mike Ribeiro - His antics can be a bit much, and while he’s likely to slow down at least a bit, most savvy owners recognized him as a great assist man. He won’t win any popularity contest, but that just means he’ll be easier to land later than he should go.

Ryan Getzlaf - Deep down, I’ve always believed that Getzlaf was even more talented than Corey Perry. He’s not Russian and he’s not Jeff Carter, so no one calls him “mercurial” or “enigmatic” even though his production can be wildly unpredictable. Luckily, he’s in a contract year and was probably a bargain in your draft, so cackle your way to the fantasy hockey bank with this one.

Alexander Semin - It makes perfect sense that a change of scenery has benefited the fragile, hysterically over-hated winger. Scoring 20 points in 21 games won’t change many minds, but his +15 should shut at least a few people up. The only valid criticism hides in the bushes like a horror movie killer, though: can he stay healthy?

It’s easy to laugh at Carter’s almost unthinkable goal-to-assist ratio (14G vs. 2A), but you know what? Assists are like quarters in fantasy to the goal’s dollar; they’re great but goals simply command a higher premium. Carter’s solid shooting rate, typically cheap draft position and talent make him a middle finger in draft form.

Personally, I’d rather flee the scene with The Joker than frown in the batcave with Batman, and I don’t think I’m alone.

Jump for Geno’s reunion and more.

* - Hopefully you also at least enjoyed a draft party or two in your early days. It’s already kind of wrong to put together a team over a hot computer instead of in a bar with your sloppy friends/acquaintances/co-workers now that you’re the more imaginary battle-hardened type. But that’s another conversation for another day.

Before we get into this, do note the biggest story of Monday: Evgeni Malkin returned surprisingly soon from a concussion and looked great. More on that later on in Tuesday’s Dose ...

Take a second, step back and think of a time that might be long ago or really not that far away: your first-ever fantasy hockey draft.

For the vast majority of you, I’d wager that it was a purer time - some might say a naive time - for you as a hockey fan.* Back then, you were FAR more likely to pick a guy you admired or rooted for. Now, you should really look at your team as a band of mercenaries who are hopefully more competent than the color-coded bunch in “Reservoir Dogs.”

As you might guess, my advice is that you should take the mercenary approach. Ideally, you should look at the waiver wire and draft board like a Terminator robot might.

In all honesty, I almost prefer to load my roster with “enigmas” who are generally loathed by other hockey writers and fans. Perhaps it’s my inner B-movie villain or wrestling heel, but really, you’re better served to align yourself with producers whom you’re reluctantly (or not-so-reluctantly) adding because they’re just that good instead of siding with your heart over your brain.

Just look at some of the best values and league leaders; those lists are littered with some of the most loathed guys around. (Note: I actually think most, if not all of those loathed types are a lot of fun.)

Sidney Crosby - Don’t furrow your brow. Merely take a stroll around Twitter/message boards and you’ll see how many people have a serious distaste for “The Golden Boy.” While the vitriol has cooled off more recently (maybe because of his concussion troubles), it’s always there, barely below the surface.

Ultimately, he’s like Lebron James in many ways. They both are brilliant enough to dazzle casual and hardcore observers alike. They both draw a lot of strange, misplaced rage from fans. Most importantly, though, they both absolutely live up to the mountainous hype they arrived with.

Patrick Kane - As someone who’s been waving the Patrick Kane pom poms for a while now, it’s really satisfying to see the supposedly “troubled” star rise from a really good player to a no-doubt-about-it elite player.

Mike Ribeiro - His antics can be a bit much, and while he’s likely to slow down at least a bit, most savvy owners recognized him as a great assist man. He won’t win any popularity contest, but that just means he’ll be easier to land later than he should go.

Ryan Getzlaf - Deep down, I’ve always believed that Getzlaf was even more talented than Corey Perry. He’s not Russian and he’s not Jeff Carter, so no one calls him “mercurial” or “enigmatic” even though his production can be wildly unpredictable. Luckily, he’s in a contract year and was probably a bargain in your draft, so cackle your way to the fantasy hockey bank with this one.

Alexander Semin - It makes perfect sense that a change of scenery has benefited the fragile, hysterically over-hated winger. Scoring 20 points in 21 games won’t change many minds, but his +15 should shut at least a few people up. The only valid criticism hides in the bushes like a horror movie killer, though: can he stay healthy?

It’s easy to laugh at Carter’s almost unthinkable goal-to-assist ratio (14G vs. 2A), but you know what? Assists are like quarters in fantasy to the goal’s dollar; they’re great but goals simply command a higher premium. Carter’s solid shooting rate, typically cheap draft position and talent make him a middle finger in draft form.

Personally, I’d rather flee the scene with The Joker than frown in the batcave with Batman, and I don’t think I’m alone.

Jump for Geno’s reunion and more.

* - Hopefully you also at least enjoyed a draft party or two in your early days. It’s already kind of wrong to put together a team over a hot computer instead of in a bar with your sloppy friends/acquaintances/co-workers now that you’re the more imaginary battle-hardened type. But that’s another conversation for another day.

MALKIN A DIFFERENCE

When I heard that Evgeni Malkin practiced in a real way on Sunday, I figured he’d take it slow and maybe return in a week (or this weekend). Instead, he jumped right into action, helping the Pittsburgh Penguins befuddle the declining Tampa Bay Lightning.

Malkin hit the ground running, creating nice chances among his five shots on goal. He found the net on one of his best tallies of 2013 and selflessly handed an empty-netter to James Neal for an assist.

I get a little nervous when anyone returns abruptly from a concussion or beat-around-the-bushes “head” injury, but it has worked out well (so far) for Geno and for Marian Hossa. Everyone’s different, so why wouldn’t that apply to brain injuries, right? I guess.

So should he rise to fantasy sainthood? Eh, I expect him to slow down a bit, but he’s got the pedigree (seventh pick of the 2009 NHL Draft) and decent enough opportunities to be above average. If you can drag a more proven commodity from a rabid Buds fan, all the power to you, but he looks promising at worst.

If nothing else, can we avoid the ridiculous scrutiny he faced regarding “fitness tests” with other players in the future, unless they show up like Keith Tkachuk/Shawn Kemp did after lockouts? Athleticism is increasingly important in the speedier NHL, but this stuff can get pretty ridiculous sometimes.

If you have to choose between the two, it’s an intriguing question. Ellis is more experienced and has a team that is likely to give him more goal support overall. Markstrom is the sexier talent. My brain says Ellis while my gut (which has better sense than my heart) says Markstrom.

For now, I’m going with my gut in this case. It’s a tough choice, though.

Mathieu Garon suffered a lower-body injury, opening the door for Anders Lindback, who looked shaky. Is it me or are the Lightning actually the Southeast Division team most in need of (gasp) Roberto Luongo? Just throwing it out there … Patrick Kaleta was suspended for five games for that hit on Brad Richards. Honestly, almost every suspension has been either a little bit or way too light this season. Brendan Shanahan (now the soft Shanahand?) is either factoring in a shortened season or just caving to whiny league executives … Dustin Byfuglien might not be available tonight for personal reasons. Keep an eye on Rotoworld for updates on that.